Scholars find cannibalism at Jamestown settlement

May 2, 2013 12:01 AM

Doug Owsley, division head for Physical Anthropology at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, displays the skull of "Jane of Jamestown" during a news conference at the museum in Washington, Wednesday, May 1, 2013. Scientists announced during the news conference that they have found the first solid archaeological evidence that some of the earliest American colonists at Jamestown, Va., survived harsh conditions by turning to cannibalism presenting the discovery of the bones of a 14-year-old girl, "Jane" that show clear signs that she was cannibalized. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)AP

May 2, 2013 12:01 AM

For years, there have been tales of people in Jamestown, Va., the first permanent English settlement in America, eating dogs, cats, rats, snakes and leather to stave off starvation. There were also written accounts of settlers eating their own dead, but no evidence could prove that -- until now.

LATEST DISCOVERY: The Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History and archaeologists said the bones of a 14-year-old girl show clear signs that she was cannibalized. Evidence indicates clumsy chops to the body and head of the girl, who appears to have already been dead at the time. The remains of the girl, named "Jane" by researchers, were found in a cellar at the site that had been filled with trash, including bones of horses and other animals consumed in desperation, according to archaeologists.

HISTORY: Forensic anthropologist Douglas Owsley said the human remains date back to a deadly winter known as the "starving time" in Jamestown from 1609 to 1610. Hundreds died during the period. The historical record is chilling. Early Jamestown colony leader George Percy wrote of a "world of miseries," that included digging up corpses from their graves to eat. "Nothing was spared to maintain life," he wrote.

PAST DOUBTS: Archaeologists had been skeptical of stories of cannibalism because there was no solid proof. "Historians have questioned, well did it happen or not happen?" Owsley said. "And this is very convincing evidence that it did."